Austrian robots are ensuring safety on oil rigs

Taurob is manufacturing innovative robots that can undertake autonomous safety inspections of oil rigs. The firm won an international competition organised by oil company Total.

Taurob is a young company that combines new ideas with technical expertise to the evident satisfaction of its customers in the health and safety sector. The company has developed its high-end solutions in co-operation with partners including leading research institutions and universities.

On oil rigs, sudden escapes of gas can lead to faults that can constitute a significant risk for both crew and the environment. A robot developed by Taurob and Darmstadt Technical University is capable of taking readings from instruments and valve positions, measuring temperatures and gas concentrations, recognising unusual noises, obstacles and people in its surroundings and safely negotiating wet stairways. The robot is also the world’s first completely autonomous inspection robot with the capacity to be used safely in potentially explosive environments.

Taurob has won the ARGOS Challenge robotics competition organised by oil and gas company Total S.A.. Held over three years, the competition pitted five top-flight international teams against each other in the challenge to develop a robot for use in both routine inspections and emergencies on oil rigs. Total is due to phase in Taurob’s new robot on its oil platforms in 2020.